Treatment of phantom limb syndrome and other sequelae of physical injury

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems and devices that provide a therapeutic solution to alleviate the pain and discomfort of phantom limb syndrome are disclosed. The methods and systems of the present invention generally comprise capturing data from recording devices operably coupled to a processor and/or computing device, the recording devices configured to capture data associated with intact portions of a missing limb, one or more intact limbs and/or portions of the environment surrounding the missing limb, identifying the data captured, generating a three-dimensional virtual image of the missing limb and the surrounding environment from the data captured, and displaying the three-dimensional virtual image and the portions of the surrounding environment to the amputee such that the missing limb appears intact. The present invention advantageously provides a therapeutic and more immediate solution to alleviate the pain and discomfort from phantom limb syndrome.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/658,084, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,867,961, which claims the benefit under35 U.S.C. § 119 (e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No.61/952,723 filed Mar. 13, 2014. The text and contents of theaforementioned applications are hereby incorporated into thisapplication by reference as if fully set forth herein.

FIELD OF INVENTION

The subject disclosure generally relates to the field of prostheticlimbs. Specifically, embodiments of the present invention relate tomethods and devices for treating phantom limb syndrome, and methods forscreening prosthetic limbs for amputees.

DISCUSSION OF THE BACKGROUND

For the purposes of this specification, the present invention willgenerally be described in relation to treating phantom limb syndrome(the ability to feel pain and/or sensations in a limb that no longerexists). However, the invention is not so limited and may be applied ina variety of other applications including, but not limited to phantomsensations that may be perceived in people who have survived strokes buthave lost function in certain body parts, people who have had spinalcord, nerve, or other types of injury, or people who were born withoutlimbs.

Frequently, people who have lost a body part experience pain or otherphysical sensations as a result of Phantom limb syndrome. When sufferingfrom this ailment, people who are missing a limb feel pain as if thelimb were there and hurting, itching, or otherwise needing attention,yet because the body part is not present, the body part cannot receiveattention or treatment.

This section is provided for background purposes only. Nothing in thissection is to be construed as admission as to whether such technologywould be considered art relevant to the patentability of the presentinvention. Inclusion of technology and information in the section belowis not an admission that it exists or is in development other thandevelopment by the inventors of the present invention.

Current treatment for Phantom limb syndrome is often ineffective and,even if effective, in nearly all cases involves an unacceptably longperiod before the patient feels sufficient relief. Conventionaltreatments include therapies such as mirror therapy (MT) and box mirrortherapy, which are used with some limited success. However, it is oftenthe case that any improvement seen in amputees occurs no faster thanover several months and in some cases far longer. Additionally there maybe different causes of phantom pain, and it is unclear which causes areefficaciously mitigated by MT. Indeed, MT appears to be, at best, onlypartially effective.

One of the ways that MT works is by tricking the amputee's brain intobelieving that the missing limb is still there and that they still havecontrol over it. This happens when the amputee's brain associates themovement of the working limb with the movement of the limb that nolonger exists. For instance, if a below-the-elbow amputee were topretend that they were clapping using a box mirror, the amputee wouldsee two clapping hands; one being a real hand and the other being areflection. MT is limited because it requires, in most instances, thatthe amputee engage in exercises where a mirror image of the intact limbcan be perceived. This system is imperfect, far from portable, andunable to present the patient with sufficient or appropriate input aswould be necessary for fully effective treatment. MT has beenimplemented within a computing environment (as described inhttp://www.bbc.com/news/health-26327457). In that case, a digitalrepresentation of an arm is displayed on a computer monitor without theuse of a mirror.

In any case, what does not exist in the art is a system, device, ormethod that alters data prior to its perception by the human sensorysystem, where the alteration is done in a manner that changes the humanreaction to the data or the human's response to his or her environment.Very different from existing therapeutic solutions such as MT, theinstant invention allows the amputee to actually control a virtual limbwith the brain as opposed to tricking the brain into thinking that it iscontrolling a limb.

Consequently, there is a strong need for methods, systems and devicesthat provide a therapeutic and more immediate solution to alleviate painand discomfort from phantom limb syndrome.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An amputee uses the present invention incorporating augmented reality(“AR”), and is presented with an intact virtual limb that appears tothem identical to their pre-amputation limb. The virtual limb may becontrollable by the user. Over time, the limb control may be reduced,the limb may be faded out, portions of the limb may be “amputated”, orother modifications made so that the user's brain can adapt to therequired new neuronal configuration at a pace that minimizes the painand discomfort frequently associated with loss of a body part (i.e.,phantom limb syndrome).

The present invention mitigates debilitating pain or discomfort by usingAR sensory input to change the time necessary for neuronal remappingafter loss of a limb. The invention provides flexibility as to theorder, the areas, and the speed with which remapping may beaccomplished, thus allowing the remapping to be modified in a mannerthat minimizes patient discomfort. For example, a below-the-knee amputeemay utilize AR that simulates an intact leg. The AR displays an intactleg in real time. When the amputee thinks about moving the amputatedlimb, electrodes connected to the stump receive neural input, and thesystem simulates real time movement by the AR limb. The amputee has theillusion that they still have their amputated limb with full controlover it.

In some aspects, force feedback and audio feedback may be used toincrease the realism of user interaction with the simulated limb, forexample, by allowing the user's hand to feel resistance and allowing theuser to hear noise when the user scratches the simulated limb. Tactilestimulation of the virtual limb may be accomplished by neural input fromelectrodes, or force feedback on the portion of the limb above theamputation site. Over time, the visual and other aspects of thesimulated limb may be faded out or altered so that the user's brain mayremap the neuronal configuration, at a pace that does not induce pain ordiscomfort. These inventions, alone or in combination, serve toalleviate phantom limb pain and discomfort.

Furthermore, the instant invention may make it possible for prostheticcandidates to be virtually screened and fitted for the appropriateprosthetic solution. Additionally, the candidate may be trained with theinstant system prior to receiving the permanent prosthetic. Forinstance, once the appropriate prosthetic solution or a number ofoptional solutions is determined by the system, said potentialprosthetic solutions may be saved in the system's memory. The prostheticcandidate may then continue to compare and practice with the virtualmodel prosthetics. Once the most appropriate prosthetic is identified,the candidate may then continue to practice with the appropriateprosthetic so that once the real prosthetic is manufactured, the amputeemay begin using the prosthetic limb in the real world with little to nolearning curve.

These and other advantages of the present invention will become readilyapparent from the detailed description below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various non-limiting embodiments are further described with reference tothe accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a method of treating phantom limbsyndrome according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 schematically illustrates a method of incorporating personallyidentifying information into the virtual 3D image of the missing limbaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 schematically illustrates a method whereby the amputee maycontrol the virtual 3D model as if the virtual 3D model were their ownlimb according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 schematically illustrates a method whereby the virtual 3D imageof the missing limb shrinks or fades over time based on the measurementof nerve impulses according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 schematically illustrates a system and devices for treatingphantom limb syndrome according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to various embodiments of theinvention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. While the invention will be described in conjunction with thefollowing embodiments, it will be understood that the descriptions arenot intended to limit the invention to these embodiments. On thecontrary, the invention is intended to cover alternatives,modifications, and equivalents that may be included within the spiritand scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.Furthermore, in the following detailed description, numerous specificdetails are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding ofthe present invention. However, it will be readily apparent to oneskilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced withoutthese specific details. In other instances, well-known methods,procedures and components have not been described in detail so as not tounnecessarily obscure aspects of the present invention. Theseconventions are intended to make this document more easily understood bythose practicing or improving on the inventions, and it should beappreciated that the level of detail provided should not be interpretedas an indication as to whether such instances, methods, procedures orcomponents are known in the art, novel, or obvious.

For the sake of convenience and simplicity, the terms three-dimensionalimage, 3D image, 3D model, virtual limb and 3D virtual image may be usedinterchangeably herein, but are generally given their art-recognizedmeanings. Also, for convenience and simplicity, the terms pain,discomfort, and itching may be used interchangeably, and wherever onesuch term is used, it also encompasses the other terms.

As discussed in the background, people who have lost a body part mayexperience pain or other physical sensations as a result of phantom limbsyndrome. An estimated 80% of amputees may experience phantom pain atsome point during their lives. This condition is a result of an amputeeperceiving pain in missing body parts. Sometimes the cause of pain maycome from the muscle adjacent to the amputation point becoming clenchedin an uncomfortable position. Many amputees may experience phantom limbsensations such as feeling as though the missing limb is being touched.The term phantom pain, in general, is a reference to the perception ofpain in missing body parts, although it should be appreciated that theinstant inventions are not limited to sensations of pain, but also mayencompass other phantom sensations. Some amputees also experience aphenomenon referred to as telescoping, where the amputee perceives thattheir missing limb is growing shorter gradually over time. While phantompain is most closely associated with amputated limbs, this very painfulcondition is experienced by many with body parts in general that nolonger exist. Indeed, there are reports that the removal of theappendix, an organ not normally a source of any sensation or mentalfocus, may result in phantom pain. While this document utilizes the term“phantom limb pain”, it should be understood to include similar orrelated phenomena.

The present invention relates to systems, devices and methods to provideimmediate or near immediate relief from the pain and discomfort ofphantom limb syndrome by generating a three-dimensional virtual image ofthe missing limb, and providing the amputee with the means to controlthe virtual limb in real or near real time.

Exemplary Methods of Treating Phantom Limb Syndrome

In one aspect, augmented reality technology is utilized to permit aperson to see a missing limb. Such measures may be useful in reducingthe symptoms of (or resolving) phantom limb syndrome. That is, whenlooking through the augmented reality technology (or otherwise using theaugmented reality technology), the user is presented with some form ofadditional data that helps to mitigate the effects (or cause) of phantomlimb syndrome.

In one implementation, a method of treating phantom limb syndromecomprises: (a) capturing data from a recording device operably coupledto a computing device and/or a display, the recording device configuredto capture data associated with intact portions of a missing limb, oneor more intact limbs and/or portions of an environment surrounding themissing limb; (b) identifying the data captured; (c) generating athree-dimensional virtual image of the missing limb and the surroundingenvironment from the data captured; and (d) displaying thethree-dimensional virtual image and the portions of the surroundingenvironment to the amputee such that the missing limb appears intact.

An exemplary system/method 100 is schematically illustrated in FIG. 1.The system may include a recording device 105, a processor/computingdevice 125, and a display device 135. In the embodiment of FIG. 1, therecording device 105 captures data associated with portions of themissing limb, one or more intact limbs and/or portions of theenvironment surrounding the missing limb. The processor/computing device125 analyzes the data, identifies the data and/or images captured, andcalculates and/or generates a three-dimensional virtual image of themissing limb and the portions of the surrounding environment from thecaptured data. The display device 135 generates and/or displays thethree-dimensional virtual image of the missing limb and portions of thesurrounding environment.

The recording device 105 in the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1 maycomprise one or more cameras, video recorders, audio recorders,spectrography equipment, medical measurement devices, and/or otherdevices that may be useful to capture data and/or images of the intactor missing limbs and/or environmental data. Processor/computing device125 may be a conventional desktop or laptop computer, or many compriseany other type of device used for processing/computing functions (e.g.,a notepad, tablet, smartphone, etc.) The display device 135 in theembodiments of the instant invention may comprise any type of display,including without limitation, a flexible display, wearable glasses, anLED display, an auto-stereoscopic display, a holographic display, aprojector and screen, or other similar display. The display may, in somecases, be mounted, including, without limitation, on an adjustabletable, platform or other structure, in a manner that allows the displayto adjust to the needs of the amputee or the activity the amputee may beengaged in. The display may be connected to cameras, a microprocessor,antennae, electrodes, or other transmission, reception or similardevices.

The recording device 105 (e.g., one or more cameras) may be positionedat several angles above, below, or otherwise in line of sight with partof the adjustable platform and display in a manner that allows thecameras to capture every angle (or a desired number of angles) of theenvironment, the intact portions of the missing limb, any intactcorresponding limb (e.g., a missing right arm and an intact left arm),or some subset of those elements. The cameras may be attached to theadjustable table, platform or other structure such that they are able toboth rotate and slide if the system determines that more data isrequired to complete the modeling and rendering of the environment andthe amputee's missing limb.

In one aspect, a light barrier may be utilized to block the amputee'smissing limb from sight. The light barrier may be a stereoscopic monitorthat does not require glasses for use. In one aspect, the light barriermay be anywhere on the spectrum from fully transparent to fully opaque.The camera system may record a 3D image and alter it for display on themonitor so that it appears to the amputee that their missing limb hasbeen restored.

In some aspects, some or all of the AR presented to the patient may begenerated artificially and/or from a group of one or more sets of imagesor videos. The images used to construct the AR, such as the environmentand the limb, may be pulled from several sources, including but notlimited to, databases such as the amputee's medical records, socialmedia, photographs or other available media sources associated with theamputee or not associated with the amputee. The system may then pullthis data, analyze it and render a model of the amputee's missing limband the environment requested by the administrator. In one aspect, theimage or images used may be modified programmatically or by a human, ora combination thereof. In another aspect, the imaging or image sourcesmay be captured using a device capable of three dimensional capture. Inanother aspect, motion capture of the intact limb may be obtained andutilized to make the artificially generated image of the missing limbreact in a manner that the user perceives as more natural or genuine.

In some implementations, the system may be set so that, by default, itcaptures the existing intact limb with its cameras in order to generatea 3D model of the reflection of the intact limb. In one aspect, even ifthe system is able to render a complete model of the amputee's missinglimb using an existing limb, the system may compare the data used togenerate the model to data from a database such as the amputee's medicalrecords so as to detect any personally identifying mark that may existon the missing limb, such as a birthmark, a tattoo, a scar or some othermark unique to the amputee. The system may then incorporate anypersonally identifying marks into the existing generated model to makethe model appear to the amputee as close to the amputee's limb prior toamputation as possible. Where there is a mark on the intact limb but themark did not also appear on the missing limb, the mark may be altered orremoved by the system.

In some embodiments, the 3D virtual image may incorporate bodyalterations that do not currently appear on an intact limb, or that didnot appear on the missing limb before it was amputated. For example, theuser may desire a tattoo, piercing or other personally identifying markon the 3D virtual image of the missing limb, and such image may begenerated on the missing limb from images stored in one or moredatabases, or pulled from social media, the Internet and/or othersources. The body alteration may be a permanently or temporarily addedalteration to the 3D image of the missing limb.

This embodiment is described in method 200 of FIG. 2. In the embodimentof FIG. 2, the system components comprise recording device 205, which isoperably coupled to processor/computing device 225, which is furtheroperably coupled to display device 235. Similar to the recording device105 of FIG. 1, the recording device 205 may be one or more cameras,video recorders, audio recorders, spectrography instruments and/orequipment, medical measurement devices, and/or other devices that may beuseful to capture data and/or images of the intact or missing limbsand/or environmental data. Processor/computing device 225 may be aconventional desktop or laptop computer, or many comprise any other typeof device used for processing/computing functions (e.g., a notepad,tablet, smartphone, etc.) The display device 235 in the embodiments ofthe instant invention may utilize any type of display, including withoutlimitation a flexible display, wearable glasses, an LED display, anauto-stereoscopic display, a holographic display, a projector, or otherdisplay.

The method begins at step 210. At step 210, data associated with intactportions of the missing limb, intact limb(s) and portions of thesurrounding environment is captured by the recording device 205. At step220, this data is analyzed and identified (e.g., by visual imagerecognition software) by the processor/computing device 225. Based onthe data captured and analyzed, at step 230, the processor/computingdevice calculates and/or generates a 3D virtual image of the missinglimb. At step 240, the 3D virtual image is compared with data extractedfrom one or more databases. The database(s) may be located on servers,including but not limited to medical record servers, penal systemservers, workplace servers, servers associated with social media sites,cloud based servers, etc.

At step 240 it is determined whether there is a personally identifyingmark on either the intact limb or on the missing limb. If there is not,then at step 250, the 3D image of the missing limb is displayed bydisplay device 235. If there is a personally identifying mark on eitherthe intact limb or the missing limb, then at step 260 the personallyidentifying mark is either incorporated in or removed from the 3Dvirtual image, depending on whether the mark had been on the missinglimb before it was amputated, or whether it is on the intact limb, butwas not on the missing limb.

In the event that the amputee lost both arms, both legs, or all limbs,the system may rely on data collected from media showing the amputee,before the incident that removed the amputee's limbs. If such data doesnot exist or may not be attainable, the system may render limbs based onthe averaged, modal, or other data from other amputees. The system maymake data selections for the averaging based upon the amputee's gender,height, weight, cultural background, musculature or other visualattributes such as skin color, which may be determined by the system'srecording device (e.g. cameras). Based on the amputee's size the systemmay be able to determine the appropriate dimensions for the model basedupon remaining structures such as the thigh, bicep, forearm or otherbody part of the amputee. In one aspect, it may be desirable to utilizefamily members in such a case.

Referring now to FIG. 3, therein is shown another embodiment of a system300 of the present invention. Electrodes 310 may be attached above theamputation site 309, or at another appropriate site (e.g., oneidentified by a clinician). The electrodes 310 may intercept electricalsignals from the nerve endings 308 in the remaining muscular tissue atthe amputation site 309. These electrical signals may be interpreted bythe processor/computing device 325 and the appropriate movement may bemade by the 3D virtual model 315. Effectively the amputee may controlthe virtual model 315 with their brain 305 as if the model 315 weretheir own limb. It should be understood that the reference to “attachingelectrodes” is not meant to be limiting, and in fact additionalmechanisms for reading or measuring neural signals are intended to beincluded in the use of that term, including mechanisms that do notrequire physical attachment.

Additionally, using a motion sensing 3D camera 335 (or other sensorydevices), the system 300 may detect and recognize certain gestures, suchas but not limited to, scratching, pinching, or poking the virtual limb.The recognition and registering of such a gesture may translate intotactile sensory stimulation of the virtual 3D model 315 that may betransmitted to the brain 305 of the amputee, such as by way of theelectrodes 310 attached to the amputee's body at the amputation site309, which measure and transmit nerve impulses. Consequently, when thesystem 300 recognizes tactile sensory stimulation of the virtual 3Dmodel 315, the amputee may feel the stimulation as if the amputee's ownbody was being stimulated. The system 300 may be able to recognize suchtactile stimulation by both remaining aware of where the virtual 3Dmodel 315 is in space in relation to the surrounding environment and bymapping out and integrating virtual biologically accurate and/orresponsive nerve systems into the virtual limb model 315. Additionally,in some aspects force feedback may be applied on the portion of the limbthat has not been amputated to allow the user to feel scratching,pinching and/or poking of the amputated limb.

In some instances, visual stimulation may be recognized by the amputeeand translated into tactile sensory stimulation of the missing limb. Forexample, a virtual heating pad on the missing limb (and/or an actualheating pad element on the intact portion of the missing limb) maystimulate the amputee's brain to feel warmth in the area of the missinglimb. Similarly, a cold sensation on an intact limb and/or the intactportion of the missing limb (e.g., ice applied to the intact limb) andvirtual ice applied to the 3D image of the virtual limb, may stimulatethe amputee to feel cold in the missing limb. The ability of the virtuallimb model 315 to register sensory stimuli, visual or otherwise may makeit possible for the virtual limb 315 to respond to virtual environmentchanges, including, but not limited to temperature changes, pressure andtexture.

For instance, the virtual environment around a virtual leg may bechanged by input into the system to make the environment around the legappear cold to the amputee's eyes and feel cold to the touch of thevirtual leg. In another aspect the virtual environment may change suchthat the virtual limb appears to be resting in a bucket of warm water.In this scenario, the amputee may feel the virtual warmth of the virtualwater and its wetness. Furthermore, the amputee may feel the virtualcoarseness of the edge of the galvanized bucket as the amputee removesthe virtual leg from the bucket and rests it on the real floor. Usingcameras and thermal imaging the system may recognize when the virtualfoot has made contact with the real floor and allow the amputee to feelthe floor's coolness and gradually drop the temperature of the warmvirtual foot in response. Further, when “touching” the virtual limb withan intact limb (e.g., an intact hand), such touching may create atactile sensation in the missing limb. For example, the amputee mayapply a real (or virtual) ice pack to the missing limb. The actual coldsensation from a real ice pack against the amputee intact hand (or theimage of the virtual ice pack touching the virtual limb) may create thefeeling of cold in the virtual limb. In some aspects this level ofsensitivity may make the virtual limb indistinguishable from a reallimb.

In some embodiments, a sample of the amputee's DNA may be taken, the DNAsequences read, analyzed and/or compared with other DNA markers, and theappearance, musculature, texture, etc. of the amputated limb may berecreated based on the characteristics of the amputee's DNA. In thefuture, it may be possible to create a “real” limb, based on a sample ofan intact limb of the amputee, or other part of the amputee's body.

In some embodiments, a person suffering from phantom limb syndrome maywear augmented reality glasses, augmented reality contact lenses, orother means of augmenting perception, and a realistic image of a limbmay be presented through the augmented reality glasses, contact lens, orother means. As the phantom limb pain becomes mitigated as a result ofseeing the artificially generated image of a limb, the image may bealtered, for example by making it semi-transparent. The image of thelimb may be altered over time so that it appears, over some period oftime, to fade out.

For example, over the course of six months a user may spend the firstweek with a fully opaque image of a limb, and then the image would fadeby some amounts daily until it simply disappears at the end of the timeperiod. When this technology is used in clinical setting, a physician'sorder, patient self-reported pain, or directly measured data (e.g.,measuring nerve impulses) may be used to determine the rate at which thelimb would fade, shrink or otherwise become diminished over time. Inaddition to or in place of changing opacity, the limb size or othercharacteristics may be changed over time, for example by shrinking thelimb by 1 mm per day or by virtually “amputating” 1 mm of the limb eachday until the virtual amputation point reaches the actual amputationpoint.

The method 400 of FIG. 4 schematically illustrates altering an image ofa virtual limb over time. The method begins at step 410 where dataassociated with intact portions of the missing limb, intact limbs andportions of the surrounding environment are captured. The data may becaptured by one or more cameras, video recorders, audio recorders,spectrography equipment, medical measurement devices, and/or otherdevices that may be useful to capture data and/or images of the intactor missing limbs and/or environmental data. At step 420, the data isanalyzed and identified (e.g., by visual image recognition software). Atstep 430, the captured data is utilized to calculate and/or generate a3D virtual image of the missing limb. Then, at step 440, the 3D image ofthe missing limb is displayed to the amputee (e.g., by use of flexibledisplay, wearable glasses, an LED display, an auto-stereoscopic display,a holographic display, a projector and screen, etc.).

At step 445, a determination is made as to whether the 3D image is stillvisible. If not, and the amputee's phantom limb syndrome has beenalleviated, then the method ends at step 445. On the other hand, if theimage is still visible, at step 450, nerve impulses are measured (e.g.,by use of electrodes attached at the amputation site and operablycoupled to a processing device configured to interpret the signals) todetermine the level of the amputee's discomfort and/or pain, and at step460, the time period and/or rate at which to shrink or fade the 3Dvirtual image is determined. At step 470, the 3D virtual image isaltered (e.g., by shrinking, fading and/or changing the opacity of theimage) and the image is again displayed to the amputee. The methodcontinues to repeat the steps 440 through 470 until the 3D virtual imageis no longer visible and/or the amputee no longer experiences pain ordiscomfort in the missing limb.

It should be noted that with regard to the embodiments described herein,that in the future, direct neural input may make it possible to transmitimages or other sensory data directly to a person's brain, and suchtechnology could be used as a transmission modality for some aspects ofthese inventions.

Exemplary Methods for Screening Prosthetic Limbs

This type of sensitivity and flexibility within the instant inventionmay lend the system to prosthetic limb screening processes. Prostheticlimb candidates may interface with the system to determine in advancewhat kind of prosthetic would be best for the candidate. Furthermore,the system may return appropriate dimensions for an aestheticallyrealistic prosthetic model that may allow for the production ofaesthetically appropriate custom limbs, that do not require extensivefitting and refitting after the limbs are manufactured. Additionally theinstant invention may be able to be used to train amputees in using aprosthetic before it is even manufactured and fitted. The system mayalso be used to train others, such as the amputee's family or othermembers of the general public or to give them a sense of what theamputee will experience.

In addition, the present invention may be utilized to provide input toinfants and very young children who are born missing a limb or whootherwise lose a limb or limb function. Such children may be too young,growing too fast, or otherwise unable to utilize an actual prostheticlimb. However, the period of neuronal plasticity during which a human'sbrain is initially mapped in a manner permitting effective control ofthe body often coincides with the period during which the child is not agood candidate for fitting with a prosthetic limb. Thus, the system maybe used to fit an appropriate virtual prosthetic limb to the child.

By utilizing the inventions described herein, the child's brain maydevelop in a manner that will allow the child to far more effectivelyand naturally control a prosthetic limb by giving the child the abilityto interact with a virtual prosthetic limb. In one aspect, where a childhas poor control of a limb but is expected to eventually obtain bettercontrol, such as in cases where there is a broken limb, muscle damage,or other non-permanent injury, the child's development of the ability tocontrol that limb may be allowed to continue utilizing the instantinventions, even during the period where the physical limb is unable toproperly function.

Once a suitable prosthetic has been decided upon, to then bemanufactured for the child's use in the real world, the child's parentmay be virtually fitted for the same virtual model of the prostheticusing the system to scale the model up to the appropriate size for theparent. The system may then virtually train the parent on how toappropriately use the prosthetic so that they may empathize with theirchild, and be able to aid their child in getting used to the prostheticif the child were too young to do this learning for themselves.

Exemplary Systems and Devices for Treating Phantom Limb Syndrome

Aspects of the present invention also relate to devices to mitigate thedebilitating pain or discomfort of phantom limb syndrome by usingaugmented reality (“AR”) to shorten the time necessary for neuronalremapping after loss of a limb. In an exemplary embodiment, the devicecomprises (a) one or more recording devices configured to capture intactportions of a missing limb, one or more intact limbs and/or portions ofan environment surrounding the missing limb; (b) a processing and/orcomputing device operably coupled to the one or more recording devices,the processing and/or computing device configured to analyze and/oridentify the data captured, and (c) a display operably coupled to thecomputing device configured to generate a three-dimensional virtualimage of the missing limb, such that the missing limb appears intact tothe amputee.

Referring now to FIG. 5, therein is shown an embodiment of a system 500for treating phantom limb syndrome. In the embodiment of FIG. 5, one ormore recording/capturing devices 505 (e.g., one or more cameras, videorecorders, audio recorders, spectrography devices, medical measurementdevices, and/or other devices that may be useful to capture data and/orimages of an intact limb, portions of a missing limb and/orenvironmental data) are operably coupled to a processor/computing device525. Operably coupling may comprise, directly coupling therecording/capturing devices, or may comprise coupling via near fieldcommunication, Bluetooth, a local area network, a Wi-Fi network, acellular network, a wide area network, etc. The processor/computingdevice 525, may be any device with which data may be analyzed,identified and/or stored (e.g., a desktop computer, a tablet, a notepad,a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, etc.).

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the processor/computing device mayalso access remote servers 531 and/or other devices to access data aboutthe amputee, his or her missing limb(s) and/or other information usefulto analyzing, identifying and/or generating a 3D virtual image of themissing limb. For example, the processor/computing device may accessmedical record servers, penal system servers, workplace servers, serversassociated with social media sites, cloud based servers, etc.

Display device 535 is operably coupled to processor/computing device 525by any of the means described above. The display device may comprise aflexible display, wearable augmented reality glasses, an LED display, anauto-stereoscopic display, a holographic display, a projector andscreen, or any other device capable of generating and/or displaying athree-dimensional virtual image of a missing limb and portions of thesurrounding environment. The display may, in some instances, be mounted,including, without limitation, on an adjustable table, platform or otherstructure (not shown), in a manner that allows the display to adjust tothe needs and/or line of sight of the amputee. The display may also beconnected to other transmission/reception devices (e.g., one or moreDVD's VCR's, audio players, etc.).

Additionally, the recording devices 505 may be positioned at severalangles above, below, or otherwise in line of sight with part of theadjustable table, platform or other structure and the display in amanner that allows the cameras to capture every angle (or a desirednumber of angles) of the environment, the intact portions of the missinglimb, any intact corresponding limb (i.e. a missing right arm and anintact left arm), or some subset of those elements. The recordingdevices 505 may be attached to the structure such that they are able toboth rotate and slide if the system determines that more data isrequired to complete the modeling and rendering of the environment andthe amputee's missing limb.

In one aspect, a light barrier (not shown in FIG. 5) may be utilized toblock the amputee's missing limb from sight. The light barrier may be astereoscopic monitor that does not require glasses for use. Therecording device(s) 505 may record a 3D image and alter it for displayon a monitor so that it appears to the amputee that their missing limbhas been restored. In some aspects, some or all of the augmented realitypresented to the amputee may be generated artificially and/or from agroup of one or more sets of images or videos.

The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the presentinvention have been presented for purposes of illustration anddescription. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit theinvention to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously, many modificationsand variations are possible in light of the above teaching. Theembodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain theprincipals of the invention and its practical application, to therebyenable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and thevarious embodiments and modifications as are suited to the particularuse contemplated. It is intended that the scope of the invention bedefined by the components and elements described herein and theirequivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of treating phantom limb syndrome in anamputee, the method comprising: capturing data from a recording deviceoperably coupled to a computing device and/or a display, the recordingdevice configured to capture data associated with intact portions of amissing limb, one or more intact limbs and/or portions of an environmentsurrounding the missing limb; analyzing and/or identifying the datacaptured; generating a three-dimensional virtual image of the missinglimb from the data captured; displaying the three-dimensional virtualimage to the amputee such that the missing limb appears intact;decreasing an opacity of the three-dimensional virtual image over aperiod of time so that it appears to fade out; and measuring nerveimpulses and determining from the nerve impulses the period of time overwhich the three-dimensional virtual image of the missing limb fades out.2. The method of claim 1, wherein the display is a flexible display,wearable augmented reality glasses, augmented reality contacts, an LEDdisplay, an auto-stereoscopic display, a hologram, or a projector andscreen.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the data captured from therecording device includes at least one of the intact portions of themissing limb.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the data captured fromthe recording device includes at least one of the one or more intactlimbs.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising altering thethree-dimensional virtual image of the missing limb over a period oftime so that it appears to shrink.
 6. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising comparing the three-dimensional virtual image of the missinglimb to visual data from one or more databases to identify a personallyidentifying mark on the missing limb or intact limb(s).
 7. The method ofclaim 6, further comprising incorporating the personally identifyingmark on the missing limb into the three-dimensional virtual image of themissing limb.
 8. The method of claim 6, further comprising removing thepersonally identifying mark on the intact limb from thethree-dimensional virtual image of the missing limb.
 9. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the three-dimensional virtual image is generated fromdata collected from media showing the amputee before the amputee had oneor more limbs amputated.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the one ormore intact limbs comprise at least two limbs from other people, andgenerating the three-dimensional virtual image of the missing limbcomprises averaging the at least two limbs from the other people. 11.The method of claim 1, further comprising: attaching electrodes above anamputation site or another site on the amputee's body, wherein theelectrodes are configured to intercept electrical signals from nerveendings above the amputation site; and moving the three-dimensionalvirtual image of the missing limb in real or near-real time based on aninterpretation of the electrical signals.
 12. The method of claim 1,further comprising: operably connecting one or more motion sensingdevices to the display, the motion sensing device(s) configured todetect and recognize one or more gestures; and stimulating thethree-dimensional virtual image of the missing limb such that thestimulation is transmitted to the amputee's brain and the amputee feelsthe stimulation.
 13. The method of claim 1, further comprising mappingand integrating virtual biologically-accurate and/or responsive nervesystem data into the three-dimensional virtual image.
 14. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the data captured from the recording device includes atleast one of the portions of the environment surrounding the missinglimb.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein generating thethree-dimensional image of the virtual environment includes generatingthe environment and displaying the three-dimensional virtual imageincludes displaying the environment.
 16. The method of claim 1, wherethe data captured is identified.
 17. A method of treating phantom limbsyndrome in an amputee, the method comprising: capturing data from arecording device operably coupled to a computing device and/or adisplay, the recording device configured to capture data associated withintact portions of a missing limb, one or more intact limbs and/orportions of an environment surrounding the missing limb; analyzingand/or identifying the data captured; generating a three-dimensionalvirtual image of the missing limb from the data captured; displaying thethree-dimensional virtual image to the amputee such that the missinglimb appears intact; and comparing the three-dimensional virtual imageof the missing limb to visual data from one or more databases toidentify a personally identifying mark on the missing limb or intactlimb(s).
 18. A method of treating phantom limb syndrome in an amputee,the method comprising: capturing data from a recording device operablycoupled to a computing device and/or a display, the recording deviceconfigured to capture data associated with intact portions of a missinglimb, one or more intact limbs and/or portions of an environmentsurrounding the missing limb; analyzing and/or identifying the datacaptured; generating a three-dimensional virtual image of the missinglimb from the data captured; displaying the three-dimensional virtualimage to the amputee such that the missing limb appears intact, whereinthe three dimensional image is generated from data collected from mediashowing the amputee before the amputee had one or more limbs amputated.